New Britain hand- and electric-tool producer Stanley Black & Decker says it will pay $234 million cash for a stake in an Ohio outdoor lawnmower maker to expand Stanley's footprint into the lawn-and-garden sector.

Stanley announced Wednesday a definitive pact with MTD Products Inc. for a 20 percent stake and that it is contractually set to acquire the remaining 80 percent, beginning July 1, 2021. Stanley says it expects to close on its initial stake sometime in early 2019.

With $2 billion in annual revenue and based in Valley City, Ohio, MTD is best known for its Cub Cadet power push and riding lawnmowers, Troy-Bilt garden tillers, Remington chainsaws, and other branded outdoor power equipment.

"This investment in MTD increases our presence in the $20 billion global lawn and garden market in a financially and operationally prudent way,'' Stanley CEO James Loree said in a statement. "We have always viewed outdoor products as an attractive growth category for us to expand our presence beyond handheld electric products."

This is Stanley's second major transaction in as many months.

In August, it said it will pay $690 million cash for the heavy-tool attachments portfolio of Illinois tool vendor International Equipment Solutions LLC. That deal is set to close before year-end.